Maverick Mastery®

Recession-stricken employees across the country are set to see more innovative and dynamic initiatives from organisations as they battle to motivate and retain their workforce during the recession, says talent management specialist Judith Germain.

With Tesco leading the way in employee engagement with their new monthly talent competition designed to increase footfall into stores and in turn boost employee morale, Dynamic Transitions MD Judith Germain says that companies have realised that their old methods simply aren’t effective in the current climate and now need to be more innovative in how they motivate and retain their most talented employees.

Germain says “with morale falling and companies predicted to be unable to pay bonuses or increase pay there is an increased risk of employee flight amongst the top performing employees. Tesco may have got the balance right with their latest talent show initiative as this could have the double effect of both increasing customer sales and employee’s sense of partnership with the company”.

However, alongside implementing new employee engagement programmes, Germain, who specialises in dealing with Troublesome Talent®, believes that there is perhaps an even more critical need for companies to ensure that their management teams have the right skills to lead the company during this difficult time and in particular their most talented employees.

“Only 20% of most workforces contain the top talent, yet it is these unconventional thinkers that drive companies forward and can provide real competitor advantage and first mover status. Often customers and clients love their flexibility and their unique ability to sense what is needed and what enables them to get close to the customer’s need in a way that their competitors struggle to”, says Germain.

“The problem is that many managers, particularly Generation X-ers, have not had enough relevant experience to manage in these changeable times and it is this lack of ability that is having a disastrous effect on morale and productivity. In our experience poor management is more prevalent at these times, and is often the main cause of such company disharmony that even with the best employee engagement programmes, companies could find it hard to recover”, adds Germain.

Judith Germain is founder of Dynamic Transitions, a leadership company specialising in dealing with Mavericks in the workplace and Troublesome Talent®. For more information visit www.developing-leadership.com

Despite the word ‘Maverick’ being banned by a leading State University for its continued over-use during the past twelve months, the economy is actually dangerously short of real Mavericks and the emergence of Generation Y employees is set to make this situation even worse, according to leading talent management expert Judith Germain.

Following the 34th release of Lake Superior State University’s annual List of Words to Be Banished and the playful inclusion of ‘Maverick’ for its overuse by John McCain in the US Presidential Campaign, Dynamic Transitions MD Germain believes that joking aside, the time has come to redefine what being a Maverick actually means, and why it is good for business.

“McCain coined the word ‘Maverick’ in his campaign speeches but clearly missed the full scope of what being a Maverick actually means in a business context. I define Maverick as wilful independence and ‘Maverickism’ can actually be found on a continuum from the conformist right through to extreme maverick tendencies”, explains Germain.

“A maverick personality is one which is wilfully independent at all times and in all circumstances. They are keen to make their mark and do things their way and often blaze innovation and lateral thinking to the projects and problems that they are working on. They often exasperate the people around them and peers can feel that they can’t keep up or hurt if an objective comment from a maverick is delivered in their usual blunt and brutally honest way”, explains Germain.

Germain believes that having maverick tendencies as opposed to having a maverick personality, is when the CEO or business owner is wilfully independent in their business dealings only.

Germain believes that the real advantage can be gained by those who can achieve Maverick Mastery® which is about being talented and different and being able to blend knowledge and skills for business success.

“When mavericks are running their business they do things in a way that is different to the rest of their industry, they take risks that other CEOs shirk at, and push harder and seek challenges that others feel are ‘insane’. This can be good for business especially if the CEO can harness their maverick nature”, says Germain.

Germain also believes that more Generation Ys need to adopt maverick tendencies if they want to stand out from their peers in an increasingly competitive environment. “Generation Y employees are already at a disadvantage in the current recession due to a difference in their values and work ethics, meaning they are often seen as lazy and unwilling to put in the extra time and effort that Generation X managers see as a given. Finding out what it means to really be a maverick and adapting those tendencies at work will give Generation Y employees real leverage and help them to secure their place in the business”, explains Germain.

Judith Germain is founder of Dynamic Transitions, a leadership company specialising in dealing with Mavericks in the workplace and Troublesome Talent. For more information visit www.maverick-mastery.com

If you liked this post you may wish to share it on Twitter by clicking here.

Organisations are failing to see learning and development issues as a key strategic priority and as a result are preparing the business for a future without adequately trained management, according to specialists at leadership development company Dynamic Transitions.

In response to the release of the CIPD Research Insight – Supporting, accelerating and directing learning implications for trainers report, Dynamic Transitions MD Judith Germain spoke out at the failure of senior management to take accountability for learning and development of employees and highlighted the need for employees to take responsibility for their own learning.

According to the CIPD report, 60% of HR managers believe that top managers do not see learning, training and development activities as strategic and Germain argues “it is the senior management’s responsibility to ensure that strategy is clear so the whole organisation can work towards common objectives, and that any investment in training is closely aligned to the organisation’s talent management programme”.

And with 52% of HR managers believing that employees do not take ownership for their learning, Germain suggests that it is the responsibility of both managers and employees to make sure that the right skills are available within the workforce, if the organisation is to survive.

“It is increasingly important that employees ensure that they are employable as well as recruitable and to do this they need to be continuously learning and taking responsibility for their learning – if not they will soon find themselves on the redundancy list”, warns Germain, who fears that some of the most talented employees may be unnecessarily lost amidst the surge of job losses rippling through the country as the credit crunch continues.

“The future of any organisation depends on the development and retention of its most talented employees and senior management need to realise that learning, training and development are absolutely critical in preparing their most talented employees for their future roles within the business”, adds Germain.

You can find out more about managing talented employees by downloading ‘Understanding Mavericks in the Workplace’ from www.developing-leadership.com/leadership-whitepapers.html. For further information or to find out more about Dynamic Transitions visit www.developing-leadership.com.

UBS will struggle to retain its top talent under its new no bonus pay structure, and may see its most valuable employees leave or poached by others companies as their trust and loyalty wavers, warn HR experts at Leadership Company Dynamic Transitions.

Experts at Dynamic Transitions predict that the new bonus structure, including the introduction of the new ‘maluses’, where bonuses can be cancelled out completely if targets are not met, is likely to spell further trouble for the struggling bank, and will not just affect the poor performing employees as intended, but also the top performers too.

“Mavericks tend to be the most talented individuals in the company and are not motivated by money. For them, it is not the withdrawal of the bonus that is the issue, but the way it appears to have been imposed. Mavericks by nature are incredibly loyal, and the concept of being rewarded in the good times and not the bad is in keeping with their work ethic, as they will do all they can to see the business survive through troubled times”, explains Judith Germain, MD of Dynamic Transitions and founder of Maverick Mastery™.

Germain believes that bank’s plans to recapture so-called ‘undeserved bonuses’ and to retain bonuses in special holding accounts for up to five years will be disastrous for the morale and motivation of their employees and will simply encourage their most talented employees to leave the organisation.

“Mavericks are wilfully independent people who typically thrive on autonomy, trust and doing what they believe is right. The new scheme will not sit well with these individuals and may well prompt them to look elsewhere, leaving UBS with the prospect of facing a talent shortage in the immediate future. And in crisis times, the last thing you need to be worrying about is losing your best talent”, adds Germain.

You can find out more about managing talented employees by downloading ‘Understanding Mavericks in the Workplace’ from www.developing-leadership.com/leadership-whitepapers.html. For further information or to find out more about Dynamic Transitions visit www.developing-leadership.com.

Business in a word, creativity in a nutshell

Successful companies have CEOs that celebrate maverickism, recognising that having employees that are able to think laterally, have integrity and are willing to point out and provide solutions to the errors of the company are to be encouraged. Mavericks or Troublesome Talent® within an organisation can bring a strong business focus wrapped up in a fission of creativity. This can equip the company with an ability to out fox the competition – especially as many companies are weighted with passionless and passive employees.

Maverick organisations think different strategically, take risks and show an unprecedented wilful independence from their competitors and others in their industry. This difference is the key to their success and customer loyalty. See here.

Maverick Mastery® is essential for organisations that can make difference count.

If you liked this post you may wish to share it on Twitter by clicking here.

Dynamic Transitions Ltd enables companies to develop mastery in their leaders and the company’s strategic ability. Businesses want to be able to have a workforce that questions, challenges and refuses to accept a status quo which is damaging or disadvantageous to the company. It is only this acceptance of difference that can enable a company to grow and outsrtip their competitors.

Companies that are prepared to invest in developing their strategic ability are more likely to achieve their strategic objectives.

Do you run a Maverick Organisation? If so your company …

• operates in a fast moving, highly competitive market
• values difference and challenge
• haves the most talented employees in your industry
• values wilful independence
• is seen as ‘cutting edge’
• is admired by others

What you do is different …

We help organisations blend their knowledge and skills to out perform their competitors and be employers of choice. We support mastery by:

• providing innovative leadership training
• executive mentoring and coaching
• strategic consulting on talent management and leadership issues

Maverick Mastery^® is essential for organisations that are constantly evolving.

For more information contact us here.

Realising creativity, harnessing talent

Troublesome Talent® can be an enigma for companies who are unsure whether they should be keeping their talent that is causing 80% of their problems but producing 20% of their profit. They are the type of people who are recognised as being a maverick – hugely talented but difficult to manage. They often complete targets and objectives with ease but cause enormous problems with colleagues and peers in the process. All the while being loved by the customer. Whilst the Maverick CEO may recognise himself in this description or others in his company like this, this recognition may hamper the company’s ability to harness this talent.

We often get involved when the business loses patience with their Troublesome Talent® and is faced with the dilemma – ‘Do I sack or do I develop?’ Sacking can be a very expensive option, not least due to the disruption to the business.

We enable the trouble to be taken out of the talent so that their maverick becomes less disruptive and more productive (Judith’s Managing Mavericks 4 minute video by clicking here).

Read more about Troublesome Talent® – the maverick in your business by clicking here.

Maverick Mastery® is essential for the restless mind realising the genius. See here.

If you liked this post you may wish to share it on Twitter by clicking here.

CEOs want their employees to perform at their best. Dynamic Transitions Ltd enables Troublesome Talent^® to develop mastery in how they interact with others and how they remain employed in corporate companies. Troublesome Talent^® wants to be recognised for the talent that they have and to have the autonomy to do what they believe is right or necessary. The most ideal role for Troublesome Talent^® within corporate life is one of internal consultancy where they can flit from one completed project to another. With full autonomy of course!

Do you have Troublesome Talent^®? If so they …

• are often accused of being blunt and inconsiderate
• always looking for challenges and getting bored once you’ve achieved them
• feel that you are more talented than your peers
• have more influence and autonomy than your peers
• are often described as charming and charismatic
• are trusted by others

They wish that they could be left to do what’s right …

Troublesome Talent^® are often frustrated that their ideas and solutions are not taken seriously by the organisation, who prefer to spend time discussing how they have articulated themselves. They cannot understand why this would be a preoccupation rather than the innovative solution that they have suggested. Troublesome Talent^® get bored easily and can become destructive if ignored. They often suffer from Success Syndrome.

We support Troublesome Talent^® and the companies that have them by:

• providing leadership training and mentoring to their managers so that they can learn to harness their talent
• providing maverick mentoring to Troublesome Talent^® so that they can reduce the tension that they cause others
• supporting their learning on how to improve their interaction with others and their social intelligence

Maverick Mastery^® is essential for Troublesome Talent^® to realise their potential and bring their world into yours.

For more information contact us here.

Organisations experiencing a plunge in employee morale and productivity due to fear of redundancy need to take radical action by demanding that senior management take a more active front line role to help rebuild confidence and loyalty, says the MD of leadership consultancy Dynamic Transitions.

The leadership specialist is urging leaders to take action now to prevent their most valuable employees from moving on to new positions due to their lack of confidence in job security, and says that ‘this is one of the effect’s of country’s mass cull of jobs, and it will continue to ripple through organisations for at least the next 12-18 months”.

“The inherent danger in a credit crunch situation is that the good employees get enticed away in their search for job security, leaving the organisation in a very vulnerable position when it comes to driving the business forward”, explains Germain, a former Head of HR with over a decade of experience in managing the strategic and operational running of the businesses in a number of industries.

“With so much negativity in the air, employees often feel like they are going to be the last one’s to know what’s going on within their organisation, and so try to predict what is going to happen, often making assumptions based on inaccurate or irrelevant information. When there has been internal redundancies, good employees are even more likely to come to the conclusion that they’d better hedge their bets by leave before they are pushed”, says Germain.

Dynamic Transitions has devised a simple 6 point plan for leaders looking to drive employees forward during the credit crunch, suggesting that a very simple internal communications delivered by good managers who can empathise and engage with their employees, whilst continuing to provide valuable and morale enhancing training, will be the making of many organisations over the coming 12-18 months.

“Employees just need to know what is going on and feel like they are involved in the future of the business. Leaders need to think of this period as a time for reflection and focus. Employees need to see that the organisation isn’t just sitting back and admitting defeat but is fighting to build its position in the marketplace and that the team is a core part of the organisation’s future. If employees know that the business wants to survive, and they can see their role in determining its future, they are more likely to want to do all they can to save it”, says Germain.

You can download your free ‘six point plan to keeping talented employees during the credit crunch’ from www.developing-leadership.com/leadership-whitepapers.html. For further information or to find out more about Dynamic Transitions visit www.developing-leadership.com.

As a result of an ageing workforce, a large number of senior management positions are likely to arise over the next five years, with very few suitably qualified or experienced successors available to fill them. So why is it that companies – and in particular larger organisations – are finding it increasingly difficult to keep hold of their top talent? Is it due to the fact that smaller companies are better at nurturing their talent and therefore see it as integral to their business? I explain why it is so hard for larger organisations to manage and nurture their most valuable assets.

In my experience, if large companies are finding it difficult to retain top talent, it is because they are finding it almost impossible to maintain their relationship with their ‘maverick’ or ‘troublesome talent’. (I define Troublesome Talent® as wilfully independent people)

This is an extremely common scenario as Troublesome Talent® are often recruited because they are highly skilled, have real flair in their area of expertise and have the ability to think up creative, innovative and lateral solutions where others are more comfortable choosing the most tried and tested ones. Troublesome Talent® or mavericks are extremely comfortable challenging the status quo and will doggedly follow the untested path if it will lead their company to success and personal recognition. This is contrary to most employees who actively prefer the certainty of the status quo.

This is where the danger lies for all organisations particularly larger ones. Only 20% of most workforces contain the top talent. It is these unconventional thinkers that drive companies forward through their relentless pursuit of continuous improvement and risk taking. It’s maverick top talent like Richard Branson, Ricardo Semler and Steve Jobs that make quantum leaps for their companies. Troublesome Talent can provide real competitor advantage and first mover status. Often customers and clients love their flexibility and their ability to deliver to their requirements each and every time. Their unique ability to sense what is needed and when enables them to get close to the customer’s need in a way that their competitors struggle to.

When they first join a company the maverick enjoys the flexibility and autonomy that they are given and this is when they really shine and deliver outstanding results. However, eventually, the company will require them to fit into its corporate structure – and begin to follow rules and this is when things begin to deteriorate.

The maverick cannot understand why they are suddenly being treated differently by the organisation and begin to react to the changed behaviour. They feel betrayed at the loss of autonomy and feel that the organisation has lost trust in their ability to operate successfully without supervision. Mavericks will not perform if they feel they are not trusted or if they feel that they have been lied to. Suddenly the organisation finds it hard to harness their maverick and keep them performing with minimal disruption to others.

At this point the organisation needs to look at what drives the change in the maverick’s behaviour and how to align their needs and desires to the organisation’s objectives. Flexibility in leadership style and understanding human nature is the key to achieving this.

When passion becomes destructive

Many larger organisations have trouble maintaining flexibility in their leaders’ styles. This often goes hand in hand with their inability to harness the passion of their top talent. Smaller enterprises do not have this problem because by their very nature they are flexible and passionate driven by the vision of the solo entrepreneur. With just themselves to please they inevitably follow their passions instinctively.

No-one has ever followed a leader that didn’t have passion. Passion for who they are, what they believe in and the direction that they want to go. Even ‘quiet’ leaders have passion, they may not have the oratory skills of JFK or Martin Luther King, but they have, nevertheless, the ability to stir their followers to a cause – a vision to strive for.

So passion is essentially a good thing … it helps us keep going when times are hard, rallies others to a cause, it builds global brands and companies … without passion a leader has no followers.

However, when passion is applied without good intent it can rapidly become destructive. Mavericks are generally very passionate people and can become very focused on singular activities. They have vision, strength of purpose, drive and direction – to the goals that they want to achieve. If their goals are not aligned to the organisation, then real sparks can ensue. Troublesome Talent® or mavericks, will do what they want to do, when they want to do it , so loss of the autonomy that drew them to the company initially can often find them spiraling out of control and losing their desire to achieve.

So how does the organisation turn around their destructive maverick?

Give them a compelling reason to change their behaviour

The organisation needs to ask themselves a number of questions, in an attempt to see things the way that the maverick views things. Mavericks can be highly influential and if they feel betrayed they can work hard to ensure they destroy the very thing that the organisation is trying to build.

Examples of questions organisations should ask themselves are:

• why has the organisation changed the way they are dealing with the maverick?
• what situation is the maverick in, what’s their perception of reality?
• How are they coming across – is the organisation using flexible leadership styles with their Troublesome Talent® or does one size fit all?

Armed with the answers to questions like those above will enable the organisation to enter into meaningful dialogue with their maverick. Mavericks only change when there is an overriding imperative to do so. Organisations need to restore the trust of their Troublesome Talent® if they want to reignite their passion in a positive way. With inspired leadership it will be easier to reach the maverick and harness their talent.

Troublesome Talent® also need to see the cost of their behaviour both financial and human. It is important to give the problem that they cause a human face. Let them reach their own conclusion as to the consequences of their actions and then ask them, how does the result that they see, achieve their end goal.

By ensuring that both parties’ objectives are aligned and that the maverick is given a clear path to follow and compelling reason to change, performance will return to previous impressive levels. It is likely that not only will the top talent perform better they will more likely stay within the organisation. Sadly, this is not always as easy as it sounds, as most large companies have complex rules that they need to follow and aren’t always accepting of the positive challenges that Troublesome Talent® can bring.